Before & After: Chris and Alyssa’s New Front Yard

When Chris and Alyssa closed on their house a few years ago, they were less than excited to be greeted by this jumble of overgrown shrubs and run of the mill river rock. It made their new house feel unsightly and tired, and they couldn’t wait till it was gone! Choosing to venture down the DIY route, they were able to transform their yard into something they both love.

And what a difference it made! Adding a border and replacing the drab river rocks with a bright mulch, along with swapping the disorderly shrubs for a variety of smaller plants, they created a yard that enhanced the facade of their house by a landslide. Alyssa noted that the project took them a lot longer than they had originally set out for [heh, I know how *that* goes….] but the extra time spent was well worth it. I’d love to see what it looks like now that a few years have passed! Nice job, guys! -erin

If you have a great garden related makeover project that you would like to share with Studio ‘g’ readers please send us pictures and tell us about it.

Other Stuff:
Love ‘Truck Songs’ – a super special mix tape heard only in my flare side Ford pick-up while on plant buying and flea market adventures. Will forever relish the day I was mistaken for Gwyneth Paltrow. I know that there is nothing better than Colorado roots, Montana blood and a rancher’s sensibility. If it is in the plant kingdom and its chartreuse, or grassy, or both – I want it. Can’t own enough pairs of Seven jeans. Thinks Rhinestone Cowboy and Grease were two of the best things about the 70s. Wears Sambas to garden and Hunters only when the mud is deep. Endless wanderlust will forever keep me in good supply of cocktail stories.
Past lives include stints as a Physicist Rocket Scientist, Pizza Maker, and Literary Agent AssistantStill want to know more?

A couple of weeks ago, when I was speaking at the Philadelphia Flower show, I picked up some Aegagropila linnaei – also known as Torasampe or Morimo, from City Planter’s show booth. Morimo are an algae that naturally forms into round ball shapes and though they are not related to moss at all, it is easy to understand…

I make little resolutions all the time so especially at the New Year I try to remind myself of those things I’ve been working towards since forever. I have this recurring art buying resolution theme that I annoyingly have struggled to follow through with. I mean its like shopping, right? why do I have such a…